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When man tries to save himself

· The Pope's Mass at Santa Marta ·

Dec. 19, 2013

Man cannot save himself, and those who have
had the pride to try, even Christians, have failed. For only God can grant life
and salvation. This was the heart of Pope Francis' homily at Holy Mass on
Thursday, 19 December at the Chapel of Santa Marta.

The Pope drew upon the Readings of the day
to remind those present that “the capacity to bestow life and salvation come
only from the Lord”. “Many times,” he said, “the Scriptures speak about barren
women, about sterility, about the inability to conceive and give life”. And yet
many times “a miracle of the Lord” occurs and “these barren women are given to
have a child”.

Pope Francis pointed to the example of
Samson's mother, whose story is recounted in the day's first Reading from the
Book of Judges (13:2-7,24-25a). He then recalled what happened to Sarah, the
wife of our father Abraham: “she could not believe” that she could have a son
at her advanced age “and she laughed behind the door of the tent where she was
listening to what her husband was saying; she laughed because she could not
believe it, but she had a son”.

Today's Gospel (Lk 1:5-25), the Holy Father
continued, reminds us of “what happened to Elizabeth”. These biblical stories
about barren women show how “life is brought for the from the impossibility of
giving life”. The Pope then noted that this also occurred with women who
perhaps were not barren, but who no longer had any hope for their lives. “We
think of Noemi, who ultimately had a grandchild”. Essentially, he said, “the
Lord intervenes in the lives of these women to tell us: I am able to give
life”.

Pope Francis then noted how the image of
the desert is repeatedly used by the prophets. “The desert, arid land which is
incapable of bringing forth a tree, fruit, or of making anything blossom”. And
yet this very desert, he said, becomes a forest. “The prophets say: it shall be
great, it will flourish!”. “The desert can flourish” and “the barren woman can
give life” only through the Lord's
promise: I can do it! I can bring forth life and salvation from your
barrenness! I can make fruit to grow from your aridity! It is the intervention
of God that makes us fruitful, that gives us the ability to give life, that
helps us along the path of holiness”.

One thing is certain, the Pope said: “we
cannot save ourselves by ourselves”. “Even many Christians” have tried it, but
only God's intervention brings us salvation.

“What must we do for our part then?,” the
Pope asked. First “we must recognize our own barrenness, our inability to bring
forth life”. Then “we must ask,” saying to the Lord: “Lord, I want to be
fruitful' I want my life to give life, I want my faith to be fruitful and to go
forward and to give life to others. Lord, I am barren; I cannot do it, but you
can. I am a desert; I cannot not do it, but you can”. This, he said, “should be
our prayer in the days leading up to Christmas”.

Pope Francis then recalled how “ the proud,
those who believe they can do everything by themselves, are struck down”. The
Pope pointed to Michal, the daughter of Saul. “She was a woman”, he said, “who
was not sterile, but she was proud, and was not able to understand what it was
to praise God, and in fact laughed at the praise that David gave to the Lord. And
she was punished with sterility. Humility is necessary for fruitfulness. How
many people like here imagine that they are just, and in the end they are poor
souls”.

Humility, Pope Francis said, is what is
truly important, the ability to say to the Lord: “Lord, I am barren, I am a
desert”. And he concluded: “how important are the beautiful O Antiphons that
the Church has us pray over the course of these days: O Son of David, O Adonai,
O Wisdom, O Root of Jesse, O Emmanuel, come and give us life, come and save us,
for only You can, alone I cannot. It is with this humility, the humility of the
desert, the humility of the barren soul, that we receive grace: the grace to
blossom, to bear fruit and to give life”.